The location decision has been made: Rheinmetall is planning to build a new factory for the production of center fuselage parts for the F-35A Lightning II fighter aircraft in Weeze in the district of Kleve in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Together with its US partners Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin the German manufacturer is aiming to achieve a “significant milestone in a key project of the Bundeswehr and a flagship project of German-American armaments cooperation”. The new plant will as already announced in February, at least 400 F-35A fuselage center sections are to be produced for the German Air Force and other friendly nations. Rheinmetall can contribute its experience both as an integrated technology group in the production of complex components and as an aviation company. Production is expected to begin in 2025.
“We are proud that our long-standing partnership with Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin as well as our very close ties to the Bundeswehr, which have existed for decades, are leading to a genuine transfer of know-how to Germany,” said Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger. “We are also pleased to contribute to the future viability of Germany as a technology location and in this way to enrich the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, where we have our traditional company headquarters. Not far from the state capital Düsseldorf, we will be building a factory that will set standards in Europe. We are grateful for the high level of political and administrative support we have received in Weeze during our search for a location.” “Northrop Grumman will replicate its integrated assembly line automation and manufacturing technologies in Weeze,” said Glenn Masukawa, vice president for Northrop Grumman’s F-35 program. “Combined with Rheinmetall’s capabilities, our collaboration with Lockheed Martin to produce the center fuselage is an important contribution to global security preparedness. We look forward to the success of this latest F-35 installation.” https://www.militaeraktuell.at/niederlande-gdels-liefert-neue-pontonbruecken/ “We are pleased with Rheinmetall’s rapid site selection for the production of F-35 center fuselage parts. This is an important milestone in the German F-35 program. This capacity expansion will help meet growing global demand and keep the F-35 one step ahead of future threats in the 21st century,” said Mike Shoemaker, vice president of F-35 Customer Programs at Lockheed Martin. “Lockheed Martin is committed to fostering industry partnerships and creating jobs in Germany. We value Rheinmetall’s role as an agile and flexible partner and look forward to our continued collaboration.” The planned factory will be operated by Rheinmetall Aviation Services GmbH and will be state of the art. It will have a production area of almost 60,000 square meters. More than 400 highly qualified new employees will operate a state-of-the-art assembly line here. The facility will also include logistics and storage areas, research and testing centers, training rooms and quality control.
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